Most Americans' 2011 resolutions feature jobs: poll

Reuters Staff

2 Min Read

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Most Americans made work-related New Year’s resolutions this year, be they to try to change jobs or get a raise or promotion at their current workplace, according to a survey released Friday.

The survey, conducted by jobs websites Monster.com and HotJobs.com, found 98 percent of Americans polled were looking to make a change in their work situation in 2011.

“Employers have been doing more with a lot less and people are getting fed up,” said Charles Purdy, senior editor of the websites.

“Last year people were buckling down, and hoping the worst wouldn’t happen, but now people are more optimistic about their job prospects,” he said.

Sixty-six percent of those polled said they were looking for a new job with a new employer, 15 percent were hoping for a raise or promotion at their current employer and 17 percent were hoping to start their own business. Two percent said they were happy with the status quo.

A government report on Friday showed U.S. employers hired fewer workers than expected in December and a surprisingly large number of people gave up searching for work, tempering the positive news of a big drop in the unemployment rate.

Forty-two percent of respondents to the Monster survey said they expected employment conditions to improve in 2011, compared to 33 percent who expected the jobs situation to worsen and 25 percent who don’t think it will change much.

Seventy-eight percent of respondents had a New Year’s resolution related to their work, compared to 68 percent last year.

The survey comprises an ongoing series of online polls and 3737 people responded to the question about New Year’s resolutions, Purdy said.

He added that the polls reflect only the opinions of people who choose to take part.